Phone: 317-846-6601 Fax: 317-575-4244 Website: www.ihsaa.org
Blake Ress, Commissioner
March 22, 2008
Zeller, the
younger brother of former Indiana Mr. Basketball Luke Zeller, scored 43 points
on 14-of-22 shooting from the field and 15-of-18 makes at the foul line. Luke
hit the game-winning basket in 2005 to propel
The
Hatchets ran their winning streak to 21 straight games dating back to early
December, closing the year with a 23-2 record under third-year Head Coach Gene Miiller. Harding dropped to 22-4 under Head Coach Al Gooden
in his 18th season. Harding, which competed in Class 2A the past
four years, was making its fifth state finals appearance.
Zeller
capped the first half with a two-handed jam, giving the Hatchets a 39-28 lead
at intermission.
The second
half was much of the same as
The
Hatchets used their size advantage for a commanding 42-27 advantage on the
glass and 19-2 edge in free throws made. Coy finished with 20 points, 16
rebounds and six assists in 31 minutes work and Kyle Price chipped in nine
points and three assists.
Underwood
led Harding with 20 points, hitting a Class 3A championship game record six
treys on 12 attempts. Senior Evan White scored 16 points, JaMarcus
Collins had nine points and Marquelo Suel added eight points and eight rebounds.
The
following team records were set during the 2008 Class 3A championship game:
-
Most points in a final (84 by
- Most combined field goals made
(55, beating 53 by
- Tied the most blocked shots (6 by
- Tied the most combined blocked
shots (8, previously done two other times)
The
following individual records were set during during
the 2008 Class 3A championship game:
- Most points (43 by
- Most field goals made (14 by
- Most three-point field goals made
(6 by Harding’s Pryce Underwood)
- Tied most free throws made (15 by
- Most free throws attempted (18 by
- Tied most blocked shots (4 by
PRYCE
UNDERWOOD OF HARDING NAMED TRESTER AWARD WINNER
Following
the game, members of the IHSAA Executive Committee named Pryce Underwood of
The award
is presented annually to a senior participant in each classification who was
nominated by his principal and coach and has demonstrated excellence in mental
attitude, scholarship, leadership and athletic ability.
Underwood
is ranked second in his senior class of 107.
He carries an 11.25 GPA on a 12.0 scale.
Underwood
is a member of the National Honors Society and the National Society of High
School Scholars and was chosen to be part of the 2007-2008 IHSAA Role Model
Program. He is also part of the Senior
Committee and Renaissance Club at Harding.
“Pryce
Underwood is arguably the best student-athlete in the history of
He is the
son of Fred and Cheryl Underwood of
Indiana
Farm Bureau Insurance, the IHSAA’s corporate
partner, will present a $1,000 scholarship to
The award
is named in honor of Arthur L. Trester, the IHSAA’s first commissioner who served the Association
from 1929-44.
VSN MEANS ACTION PHOTOGRAPHY
Visit our
friends at Visual Sports Network, the IHSAA’s official photographer for all state
championship events and one of the leading action photographers in the
CHAMPIONSHIP MERCHANDISE AVAILABLE
For t-shirts and other merchandise commemorating this year’s tournament or for any of our events, visit our friends at Morris, Inc.
STATE FINALS PROGRAMS AVAILABLE
Couldn’t
be there for the state finals? You can still purchase a copy of the official
souvenir program while supplies last! Programs are $3.00 if you purchase in
person at the IHSAA Office (
CLASS
3A POST-GAME QUOTES
Al
Gooden, Harding Head Coach
(on
“Their size hurt us a lot. They shoot the ball and rebound very
well. They are the number one team in
any class they are in. We knew they were
good, we just needed to find a way to keep them off
the boards. Our guys battled all night
long. They really move well without the
ball.”
“I don’t think there was any other strategy
we could have used – just keep them off the boards and out of the
lane. I think our kids got a little wore
down late. I thought with five minutes
to go in the game, we were ready to make a break but we missed a couple of
shots and had a couple of turnovers and they ran the lead up.”
“This is only our fourth loss of the
year. Our Seniors
came out and played hard. We really couldn’t
get our inside game going.”
Pryce
Underwood, Senior
“I was in a rhythm early but it just wasn’t
enough tonight.”
Gene
Miller,
(on Tyler Zeller)
“There is not a better player in the state of
“I thought our perimeter defense was the difference
– it was outstanding. Right from
the beginning we got out on them defensively.
They hit some tough shots, but we kept up our defensive intensity. We knew we had to go out and guard them. Our strength was inside. We just kept on pounding it inside to (
“Two championships in four years means everything for the community and the school. Winning a state championship was a goal for
me when I started coaching.”
“It was a team effort. Cody (Osmon) did a
good job in handling the basketball. Our
inside play by Zeller and Coy was the difference. Our wing players, Tyler Price who had a great
tournament run and played tremendous defense and Sam Gines
played steady.”
(on the No. 4 ranked
Hatchets tournament run)
“It was a great accomplishments
for our players when you consider on the way (to the title) they beat the
number one, two, three teams in the state and tonight we beat the number six
team in the state. No one can deny that
we are the best in 3A.”